Activists block the entrance to Dow Center
The citizens of Bhopal, India use contaminated water for drinking and washing, because no alternative is available. When Greenpeace activists delivered 250 gallons of it to the Dow Center, the citizens of Houston, USA were protected from the water by the specialist "hazchem" police called in to remove it.
The activists blocked the entrances to the Dow's Texan headquarters and demanded that Dow meet with Bhopal survivors to discuss the contaminated water issue and other injustices.
Dow's website claims "protecting people and the environment is part of everything we do and every decision we make". Yet it has shirked responsibility for the people of Bhopal for almost 20 years - and is actually suing them for "loss of work" because survivors dared to protest against the company.
"Our message is simple," said Greenpeace's Casey Harrell. "Dow must clean up Bhopal now and accept full responsibility for the health and environmental damage in that city. Until it does so, Dow will never be a responsible corporate citizen."
In 1984, a Union Carbide (now Dow) factory in Bhopal leaked toxic gas. The company's negligence killed up to 20,000 people and left 120,000 chronically ill. The survivors of the disaster continue to fight for justice from the world's biggest chemical company.
Union Carbide shirked its obligations for the Bhopal disaster by deflecting responsibility on to the Indian government. It constantly downplayed the damage to the people and environment of Bhopal to limit its liability. When the company fled from India, it abandoned the factory and fobbed off the devastated population by paying a paltry 'final' settlement of $370 to $533 per person.
The Houston blockade follows a 'virtual sit in' that will continue until Dow drops the court case against the survivors.
The 'sit in' runs from an automated website which constantly searches the Dow-run website, Bhopal.com, looking for an explanation for the company's negligence.
